Eleanor Clift, a political reporter, television pundit, and author, came to Scripps College on Nov. 29. As a contributing editor for Newsweek Magazine, Clift shared her wisdom and insight into the changing future of journalism and politics with roughly 14 students at a roundtable discussion.

Clift believes her career “parallels the history of women entering the workforce and of the rise and fall of media.”

Clift dropped out of college and got a job at Newsweek, starting as a secretary. When they began to offer internships for women, Clift became a reporter. Newsweek assigned her to cover the campaign of a man who was never going to win the presidency: Jimmy Carter. “The rule is that if you cover the winning candidate, you get to go to the White House. I call Jimmy Carter’s election my Cinderella story,” said Clift.

“Clift’s adaptability is impressive,” said Megan Petersen ( SC ’15). Even though Clift admits to not being active enough on her Facebook and Twitter accounts, she understands the importance of the Internet for journalism.

Offering advice to young women thinking about entering the journalism industry, Clift believes, “there will always be jobs for people who can think and write clearly.”

“Her perspective about what it was like to enter an industry with few women and how it has changed helps me understand how it will continue to evolve in the future,” said Elisabeth Pfeiffer (SC ’15).

Clift currently writes for The Daily Beast and is a contributor on The McLaughlin Group.